เข้าสู่ระบบJodieInside Kaiser's warm hotel room, the soft quiet air feels like a massive relief compared to the wild noise down in the corridors. The room smells faintly of crisp cedar and fresh laundry, completely washing away the leftover scent of Calden's stress. Evelyn doesn't even wait for me to sit down properly on the soft velvet sofa. She drops right onto her knees in front of me, taking both of my hands in her warm fingers and holding them tightly against her chest.Tears spill over her eyelashes and run straight down her cheeks, but she has a giant, watery smile stretched across her face."I still can't believe you are sitting right here in front of me, Jodie," Evelyn sobs softly, her thumbs rubbing the back of my knuckles over and over like she is trying to reassure herself that I am actually real and solid. "When you went missing after that terrible night, Goddess, Jodie, I thought I lost my best friend forever. I cried until my eyes were completely swollen shut. I spent weeks pra
Calden"What is going on here, Alpha?"Alvin comes around the corner of the parking area, his heavy steps slowing down as he rushes toward the car. Even with his Gamma status, he keeps his posture lowered out of respect for my position as he steps between us. He looks at Enid leaning back against the passenger door, then glances at me with clear confusion and concern."Alpha, please," Alvin says, keeping his voice carefully measured despite the high tension. "She just left the hospital. Is there a reason you shoved her back like that?"I stand there staring at my Gamma, feeling a wave of complete disgust rise in my chest. Enid immediately shifts behind Alvin's shoulder, letting out a small, pathetic sniffle while holding onto the back of his coat. She puts on that helpless face, casting her eyes down at the ground to play the victim.A dark, bitter laugh rips out of my throat, echoing off the concrete walls."Is that what you see when you look at her, Alvin?" I ask, my Alpha tone vibr
CaldenThe fury burning inside my veins feels like lava, consuming every single thought in my head as I march through the grand doors of the exhibition center. My boots slam against the ground, each heavy step vibrating straight up into my knees, but I barely feel it. All I can see is the image of Jodie standing in that hallway, her hand resting over her rounded stomach, her eyes cold as ice as she looked at me like I was nothing more than a stranger.I spot Enid near the secondary exit, standing by the passenger side of our parked dark SUV. She is nervously shifting her weight from one high heel to the other, her manicured fingers twisting the strap of her leather purse. The moment she sees me storming toward her with my chest heaving and my fists clenched tight at my sides, her face drains of all color.Before she can even open her mouth to pretend nothing happened, I reach out and grab her upper arm in an iron grip, yanking her forward until she is nearly off her feet."Hey! Calde
JodieThe heavy, tense air in the hallway thickens the second Kaiser step into view. He walks with that steady, dangerous calm he always carries around, his shoulders broad and posture relaxed, but his dark eyes are pinned right on Calden like he is ready to tear him apart on the spot.Calden stays on his knees for a second before pushing himself up off the marble floor. He wipes a hand over his wet eyes, his chest rising and falling hard as he turns around to face Kaiser."Can't you read the fucking room, Kaiser?" Calden snaps, his voice raspy and choked with raw frustration. "This is a private conversation between me and my mate. It has nothing to do with you."Kaiser doesn't even slow his stride until he stops right next to me, placing himself slightly in front of my shoulder to block Calden's path. He keeps his hands buried deep in his trousers pockets, looking down at Calden with complete disdain."As far as I'm concerned, you have no goddamn right to be here in the first place,
Jodie"I swear on my wolf, Jodie, I never saw a single text about a pregnancy!" Calden says, his hands shaking at his sides as he steps even closer. "I never knew you were carrying my child! Do you honestly think I am such a monster that I would force you to donate blood to Enid if I knew you were pregnant? I would never have let anyone lay a finger on you or touch a single drop of your blood!"I stand there staring at him, completely bewildered by the panic and desperation written all over his face. He is shouting, his throat working hard as he tries to catch his breath, looking at me like he is begging me to believe him. For a second, my mind spins. He genuinely sounds like he had no idea. But how could that be? The memory of that awful afternoon back at Silver Moon flashes in my head so clearly it makes my stomach turn."Don't stand there and play innocent with me, Calden," I say, my voice trembling with old anger as I glare right back at him. "Enid explicitly told me that afterno
JodieA dry, bitter scoff slips past my lips before I can stop it. The quiet sound echoes off the high marble walls of the corridor, turning Calden’s desperate expression into something even more raw and pained."An apology?" I ask, keeping my voice flat and quiet while every word cuts straight through the space between us. "You really think a simple word like sorry can just wipe away everything that happened? You think it erases the torture, the neglect, and being treated like dirt in your pack house?"Calden flinches as if I just slapped him across the face. He opens his mouth to speak, but I lift a hand to cut him off."I sat in that abandoned, run-down building out in the woods waiting for you, Calden," I continue, looking him dead in the eye while my hand rests firmly over my belly. "Every single minute I was trapped out there in the cold, I kept telling myself my husband would come through that door and save me. But you didn't. You lost every right to stand in front of me the se







